aA was commissioned to create a schematic design for a transformative mixed-use project in a major Canadian city. The site is a transitional block sandwiched between an exclusive shopping district and a major arterial, with significant intersections at the northwest and southeast corners of the site. Along the northern perimeter, the street is animated by seven-storey podium with double-height retail space at grade, and a boutique hotel consistent with international branded properties in the vicinity. The site is anchored by a 70-storey residential tower at the northwest corner, and an 85-storey residential tower at the southeast.

The dynamic scheme is shaped by the contingencies of an attenuated, L-shaped site and the technical challenges of erecting slender point towers directly over a subway line. A network of robust diagonal supports extends along the north and south facades of the podium and wraps around each tower. The visible structure expresses the tectonics of the architectural forms, expanding as it extends along the northern façade, contracting as it curls around the base of each tower, and becoming lighter and more ethereal as it rises upward.

aA was commissioned to create a schematic design for a transformative mixed-use project in a major Canadian city. The site is a transitional block sandwiched between an exclusive shopping district and a major arterial, with significant intersections at the northwest and southeast corners of the site. Along the northern perimeter, the street is animated by seven-storey podium with double-height retail space at grade, and a boutique hotel consistent with international branded properties in the vicinity. The site is anchored by a 70-storey residential tower at the northwest corner, and an 85-storey residential tower at the southeast.

The dynamic scheme is shaped by the contingencies of an attenuated, L-shaped site and the technical challenges of erecting slender point towers directly over a subway line. A network of robust diagonal supports extends along the north and south facades of the podium and wraps around each tower. The visible structure expresses the tectonics of the architectural forms, expanding as it extends along the northern façade, contracting as it curls around the base of each tower, and becoming lighter and more ethereal as it rises upward.